Immortal Conflict
by vez
Summary: An interlude between Change and Change2


For the tenth time that afternoon William Boone found himself flat on his back with a sword pointed at his neck. It was *not* an exaggeration. He wished he was though. Thanks to his CVI he was able to keep count of the number of times he was defeated accurately. Ten times. It was pathetic  
  
He grimaced at the thought. He and Sandoval had been sparing the whole afternoon. Sandoval was trying to teach him swordfighting. For the whole week, Sandoval had offered to teach him 'the basics' -- how to survive immortality and the Game for the moment. "Think of it as a one week crash course ," Sandoval had joked.  
  
When Sandoval had mentioned swordfighting, he was relieved, at first. Afterall he did learn fencing when he was in the academy. Besides he was in good shape, it won't be so bad, right? He had never been so wrong in his life.   
  
This was far tougher and humiliating then he thought. If Sandoval was this tough training him, how would he fare with Duncan Macleod ?  
  
"Boone," a voiced peirced through his musings. Boone blinked and saw Sandoval looking bemusedly at him. His fellow implant had a teasing glint in his eyes. "Are you and the mat done bonding yet? I could leave you two alone you know. " Sandoval continued on.  
  
He groaned. Great, just what he needed -- Sandoval teasing him for the next century or so. Boone got himself up and glared at Sandoval. "Damn, you're a sick man Sandoval. You shouldn't go around torturing poor innocent implants-just-turned-immortals and mats with your perverse humour," he retaliated.   
  
Sandoval chuckled and shook his head. "C'mon Boone, that's enough for today."  
  
  
  
Boone breathed in a sigh of relief. He didn't think he could take anymore of this. After his shower he felt rejuvenated. He was in such a good mood that he almost forgot about Sandoval teasing him just now. Almost. A smile crossed his face as he thought about revenge. Revenge -- what a beautiful word.   
  
As Boone was busy planning a diabolical scheme, Ronald Sandoval was busy checking his global for messages - oblivious. It was a relatively quiet evening. Both Boone and Sandoval were entranced in their own private thoughts.   
  
Boone's thoughts of revenge dissipated as he studied Sandoval. The immortal was an enigma. There were so many questions that went unanswered. The first few days of his immortality Boone barraged him with all questions imaginable pertaining to immortality. As he replayed the conversation in his mind, he was impressed with the ease Sandoval deflected any questions Boone asked about him. Come to think of it, he knew absolutely nothing about Sandoval the immortal. Well things were about to change.   
  
He set his jaw in fierce determination as he made his way to Sandoval. "Ron, we need to talk." It wasn't a request, it was an order.   
  
Sandoval looked up and saw him coming. He groaned inwardly. He knew he couldn't escape this time. Boone was too curious about his past for his own good. "What is it Boone? " he asked tiredly.   
  
"Why is it that you never seem to tell me anything about yourself? Every time I ask you a question about your past, you conveniently change the subject." In his current state, Boone looked like the Spanish Inquisition.   
  
There was no way out of this. Boone would continue hounding him until Sandoval told him.  
  
"There's nothing to tell, Boone," Sandoval glared at him, daring Boone to say otherwise.   
  
Boone of course did just that. " Why did you decide to work with the Taelons? Isn't it dangerous? "   
  
Boone looked at Sandoval under hooded eyes. He knew he was treading on dangerous ground. Sandoval valued his privacy and he guarded it fiercely.   
  
Sandoval knew it was only a matter of time before Boone would ask him this. It was expected. Instinct urged him to ignore the question but something held him back. Boone deserved to know.  
  
Taking a deep breath, he started his explanation. "I was the first protector, Boone."   
  
Boone was puzzled to say the least. What did Sandoval mean? Sandoval seemed to think that the sentence explained everything. Well, Boone would not let him off the hook that easily.   
  
" First protector? I mean, you are one of the first few humans to be chosen as protectors. What does that have anything to do with this? " Boone replied.   
  
Sandoval leaned forward. " Boone, broaden your thinking. You're immortal now. Think -- I. Was. The. First. Protector." Sandoval emphasised the word 'first'.  
  
Boone was lost. What was Sandoval trying to tell him? The first protector. To be a protector you need a Taelon. The first Taelon to land on earth was … Ma'el. Oh my god. That meant that… Boone couldn't finish the thought.   
  
Sandoval smirked at Boone's expression. It was a mixture of shock, surprise, curiosity and a thousand emotions he couldn't identify. It was obvious that Boone had understood his meaning. Sandoval thought that Boone was going to hyperventilate.   
  
"Do you mean that you --," Boone gulped. "You were there when Ma'el come to earth? You were his protector? "  
  
Sandoval nodded. "Well not really -- not in that sense. I was more like a bridge between the Taelons and humanity."  
  
Boone could not believe his ears. This was… monumental. " You must be at least 5000 years old." Wow.  
  
" Boone, just because Ma'el landed here 5000 years ago does not mean I am 5000 years old," he chided. "Ma'el didn't make contact with humans straightaway. He wanted to be sure of humanity's reaction to an alien. He spent centuries studying Earth from a Scientist's perspective. He studied the environment, the weather conditions, rock formations, and the works. He only made human contact centuries later," Sandoval explained.   
  
Boone narrowed his eyes and spoke, " The human contact he made, was it you? "  
  
Sandoval laughed, pleased that Boone was so perceptive. "Yes, He told me that he felt that I was different from the others. I was already immortal then. From then on our friendship bloomed and we learnt much from each other."   
  
" After learning more about humans, Ma'el decided to reveal himself to the other humans. I guess they accepted him because I did. They knew he wasn't a god, but they knew that he wasn't mortal either. So they called him a king. "  
  
A thought suddenly occurred to Boone. " You didn't know where Ma'el was buried. Why? "  
  
" The humans accepted Ma'el as being alien but from first-hand experience, I don't think they would take too kindly to me being Immortal. I mean, it would look suspicious if I didn't age. I stayed with Ma'el indefinitely. I would stay for a few decades and then leave. It helped throw suspicion off my back. Every time I returned, they would think I was a different person. Of course, as time passed, I spent more and more time away from Ma'el and Strandhill. I would stay away for decades, even centuries. However one day I came back too late. When I returned, I knew Ma'el was dead. The villagers couldn't recognise me and naturally they didn't trust me. So no one told me where he was buried," Sandoval stopped talking.  
  
Boone wanted to ask Sandoval more but stopped when he saw the look on Sandoval's face. His eyes were open but they weren't focused on anything particular. It was like Sandoval was seeing something from his past - similar to a CVI intrusion.   
  
The spell was broken when Sandoval closed his eyes for a brief moment and took a deep breath. When he next spoke, his voice was weary and sad. Boone was amazed at the metamorphosis. Sandoval looked older -- more like his true age.   
  
" The last time I saw Ma'el, he warned me about his people. I guess he knew he was going to embrace the void. He suspected that they won't listen to him and they'd come to Earth. He asked me to take care of humanity and to ensure the Taelons would not go overboard with their plans of survival."   
  
Boone understood. Sandoval had finally answered his question. He joined the Taelons because of Ma'el's wish and his love for humanity.   
  
"You better turn in early Boone, the portal trip to Seacouver will be early," Sandoval reminded his friend.   
  
"Yeah. So what are you gonna do now ? " Boone inquired.   
  
A sly grin appeared on Sandoval's face. "I got promoted, I'm now Head Protector. I have to go and find a replacement for you. There are several candidates I have to interview when I get back. "  
  
Boone felt a pang of pain in his gut. His stomach churned when Sandoval said "replacement" . The gravity of the situation hadn't really sunk in yet. He was truly dead. He had no friends, no family. He had never felt so … alone. He was jarred out of his thoughts when Sandoval placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. No words were needed. The touch itself spoke volumes. Tomorrow he would go to Seacouver to be trained and Sandoval would resume his duties as a Companion Protector. Tomorrow, everything would change.   
  
Tomorrow came too early. Sandoval accompanied Boone to the portal station.  
They exchanged a few words. When he turned, Sandoval was already gone. To the Mothership no doubt. They never really said goodbye but then they were immortal. There were no goodbyes. Time had no meaning anymore. He was confident that their paths would cross. Sooner or later.  
  
He had no idea how right he was.   
  
Sandoval walked down the hallway of the Mothership. He had just finished interviewing Major Liam Kincaid. It seemed that Da'an had taken a liking to this one and was adamant that Major Kincaid would be made his protector.   
  
Ronald Sandoval could not help wondering at this new turn of events. He received an unexpected surprise when he went through the Major's files that morning. Major Liam Kincaid served with William Boone during the SI war. Their unit was ambushed and only he and Boone survived. There was something about Kincaid ... hmmmm, he had to ask Boone about Kincaid later.  
  
  
  



End file.
